Power conversion methods and apparatus

ABSTRACT

Energy conversion apparatus includes a plurality of electric motors and bodies of mass capable or rotating about their own axis. The motors and masses are attached to a plate that rotates about a fixed core. A single belt is connected to the motors and masses to the fixed core such that the motors and masses rotate about their own axis and orbit about the fixed core. Power out is through a shaft attached to the center of the rotating plate and/or a generator located in the center of the rotating plate.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is based on provisional application Serial No. 60/287,297 filed Apr. 30, 2001.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] This invention relates in general to the field of power conversion apparatus and in particular to the field of power conversion apparatus utilizing orbiting masses in conjunction with axial rotation of the masses.

[0004] 2. Description of the Prior Art

[0005] There are numerous types of apparatus which are used to convert energy, such as electricity, into a form which is useful to do work. An electrical motor is a typical example wherein electrical energy is converted to rotational energy which can thereafter be used to turn wheels as in an automobile or to rotate machinery as with engine lathes, household appliances, grass cutters, and the like. The end use of such rotational energy is virtually limitless. With it, concrete can be made to build buildings, satellites can be built, natural resources can be mined, recycling can be accomplished, other electronic apparatus can be made, etc. Everywhere one looks, a product, a building, or a process exists which has been made using rotational energy; that is, where the energy existed in a previous state, for example, electrical, chemical, nuclear, heat, wind, etc., and has been converted into rotational energy.

[0006] I have previously disclosed and described a type of energy conversion apparatus in my U.S. Pat. No. 6,239,524 B1, entitled Power Conversion Methods And Apparatus, issued May 29, 2001. In that reference, I utilized multiple belts to rotationally orbit the electrical motors about a fixed core. It is advantageous to improve the mechanical aspects of the invention in order to reduce costs and to increase reliability while maintaining the efficiency of the energy conversion process. Accordingly, it is desirous and the need exists for rotational energy apparatus having improved efficiency, produces large amounts of power, is simple in construction and is highly reliable. The present invention fulfills this need and accomplishes these objectives.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The present invention comprises apparatus that converts electrical energy into rotational energy by uniquely using at least one small electrical motor to generate axial and orbital rotation of the motor and bodies of mass around a fixed core. The orbital rotation of the electrical motor and bodies of mass, produce a high-power output as torque, or electricity, or a combination thereof. In a preferred embodiment, at least one electrical motor and at least one body of mass are equidistantly arranged about a diameter of the rotatable plate. Pulleys attached to shafts of the motor and the mass, are connected by a common belt to the fixed core located at the center of the rotatable plate. The rotatable plate is connected at its center to a shaft or axle.

[0008] In operation, electrical energy is input to the electrical motor resulting in rotation of the motor shaft. Because the motor shaft is connected by the pulley and belt to the stationary cylinder and the motors are connected to the rotatable plate, rotation of the motor shafts causes rotation of the rotatable plate to which the motor and mass are attached. The motor and mass thusly orbit about the central axis of the assembly while the motor shaft and the mass shaft are simultaneously rotating about their axis. The speed of rotation of the rotatable plate is directly dependent upon the ratio of the diameter of the fixed cylinder to the diameter of the pulley attached to the motor and mass shafts. The same rotational speed of the rotatable plates occurs regardless of the distance between the center of the motor and the mass to the center of the fixed cylinder; but, the further the motor and mass are from the center of the fixed cylinder, the greater the amount of centrifugal force is created. This geometric advantage is utilized in the present invention to increase the torque and or power produced by the center shaft of the inventive apparatus.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Various other objects, advantages, and features of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following discussion taken in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0010]FIGS. 1A and 1B schematically illustrate the principle of operation of the inventive apparatus;

[0011]FIG. 2 is a partial schematic illustration of one embodiment of the present invention showing the use of one electrical motor and tow bodies of mass having a single belt attached to the motor and masses and around a fixed core, at each of the two ends of the motor and masses;

[0012]FIG. 3 is a simplified top plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 2 illustrating a method of maintaining tension on the belt while assuring contact with the fixed core;

[0013]FIG. 4 is a simplified cross sectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 3 taken along the line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

[0014]FIG. 5 is a simplified top plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 2 illustrating an alternative method of maintaining tension on the belt while assuring contact with the fixed core;

[0015]FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view illustrating an alternative to the embodiment of FIG. 2 where the output is a combination of electricity and torque; and

[0016]FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view illustrating yet another alternative to the embodiment of FIG. 2 where the output is electricity.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017] As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure. Also, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

[0018] Reference is now made to the drawings, wherein like characteristics and features of the present invention shown in the various figures are designated by the same reference numerals.

[0019] The principle of operation of the inventive apparatus is schematically illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 1B of the drawings. A fixed member 11 has a diameter of, for example, 2X. A rotatable pulley 12 is spaced from the fixed member 11 by a distance, for example, of Y and has a diameter of X. The pulley 12 is free to rotate about its own axis and to orbit around the fixed member 11. A belt 13 is connected around the pulley 12 and the fixed member 11. Assuming that the belt 13 does not slip, rotation of the pulley about it's own axis results in the pulley rotating two times about it's own axis while making one orbit around the fixed member 11 core because of the described geometry between the fixed member diameter and the pulley diameter. The orbiting rotation occurs because the pulley's rotation causes the belt to rotate around the pulley, which because the belt does not slip, causes the pulley to orbit about the fixed core.

[0020] In FIG. 1B, the diameters of the fixed member 11 and the pulley 12 are the same as in FIG. 1A, but the distance between the center of the pulley 12 and the center of the fixed member 11 is two times that of FIG. 1A. Again, provided that the belt 13 does not slip, rotation of the pulley 12 about it's own axis results in the pulley 12 orbiting about the fixed member 11. In this example the pulley 12 again rotates twice about its own axis while making one orbital rotation about the fixed core 11.

[0021] In both FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B, it is to be noted that the rotation of the pulley 12 in the direction shown causes the belt 13 to rotate in a counter clockwise direction which results in the orbiting of said pulley member in a clockwise direction. However, regardless of the instantaneous orbital position of the pulley member, the angle of the belt relative to the line between the centers of the fixed member 11 and the pulley 12 remains a constant. This angle causes an offset force which continually causes the orbiting motion.

[0022] Thus, the distance between the center of the pulley 12 and the center of the fixed member 11, in the example of FIGS. 1A and 1B, is immaterial to the number of orbits made by the pulley 12 about the fixed member and the number of rotations made by the pulley 12 about its own axis. Two rotations of the pulley 12 about its own axis results in one orbital rotation of the pulley 12 around the fixed member 11. Even if the distance between the pulley 12 and the fixed member 11 is ten times that of FIG. 1A, the pulley 12 will still make two rotations about its axial center while making one orbital revolution about the center of the fixed member 11. But, because the location of the pulley 12 of FIG. 1B from the fixed core 11 is two times the distance of FIG. 1A, the centrifugal force of the pulley 12 of FIG. 1B, as it orbits about the fixed member 11 is two times that of FIG. 1A. As noted above, the present invention utilizes this principle to convert motor torque to shaft torque or to convert motor power to shaft power. The advantage being the ability to use a number of small inexpensive motors to produce the output of a much more expensive large motor. The further advantage being the ability to use smaller diameter wiring to carry a number of small amounts of electricity rather than large wires to conduct large amounts of electricity. It is well accepted that the cost of manufacture and operation of larger, more powerful motors increase disproportionately with size.

[0023]FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic arrangement of one embodiment 20 of the present invention. A fixed core 21 may comprise a hollow cylinder, a solid cylinder, a plate, or a plurality of cylinders or plates having parallel planar ends with a central longitudinal axis. At least one rotatable plate 22 is arranged concentric with the core's longitudinal axis, perpendicular thereto and approximately equidistant from the planar ends of the fixed core 21. Alternatively, two rotatable plates 22 may be positioned an axially spaced distance between the planer ends of two axially aligned fixed cores 21 as shown in FIG. 2. In this embodiment, one motor 23 and two bodies of mass 23A, or two motors 23 and one body of mass 23A, or three motors 23 can be used. Each motor 23 and mass 23A can comprise a casing 31 and 31A and a center armature to which the shafts 25 are connected. The body of mass 23A can comprise a motor to which no electricity is input or can comprise a casing 31A within which is a solid mass is attached to the shaft 25A and where the solid mass and shaft 25A rotate relative to the casing 31A. Each motor 23 and mass 23A is arranged about a common diameter of the rotatable plate 22 with equal spacing therebetween. A pulley 24 is attached to each of the motor shafts 25 and to each of the shafts 25A of the bodies of mass. The motor and mass shafts 25 and 25A may be double-ended so that a pulley 24 is attached to each end, or the motor and mass shafts may be single-ended with a pulley 24 attached to the one extending end. If single-ended shafts are used, alternative motors 23 and masses 23A may be turned end-for-end so as to balance the rotational forces on either side of the rotatable plate 22. A non-slipping belt 26 extends around each of the pulleys 24 and around the fixed core 21. If the motors are double ended, two belts 26 are utilized, one at each end of the motor shafts 25. Thus, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, two belts 26 are arranged one above the upper rotatable plate 22 and the other below the lower rotatable plate 22. An axial center shaft 27 is fixedly connected to the center of the rotatable plate 22 such that rotation of the rotatable plates 22 causes rotation of the center shaft 27. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the geometry of the diameter of the fixed core 21 and the diameter of the motor and mass pulleys 24 is such that the belt 26 is tensioned against the fixed core 21 by being forced outward at the points that the belt 26 contacts the fixed core 21.

[0024]FIG. 3 illustrates a slightly different embodiment from that of FIG. 2. In FIG. 3, three motors 23 and masses 23A are again used, as is a single belt 26. However, the fixed core 21 and pulley 24 geometry does not allow for the belt tensioning of the FIG. 2 embodiment. Here, a pinching roller 28 is provided at each location where the belt 26 contacts the fixed core 21. The pinching rollers 28 can be conveniently mounted to the fixed core 21 or to the rotatable plate 22 depending on whether it is preferred to have the pinch rollers 28 rotate with the rotatable plate 22, or remained fixed with the fixed core 21. Either arrangement is satisfactory and the attachment can be by any appropriate, well-known method, such as by bolting. In order to maintain a proper amount of tension in belt 26, at least one tensioning rollers 29 can be used.

[0025]FIG. 4 shows the vertical orientation of the embodiment of FIG. 3, in cross section. The casing 31 of the motor 23 is fixedly attached to the rotatable plates 22 by any prior art method, such as by welding. The rotatable plates 22 are fixedly attached to the central shaft 27, such as by welding or bolting. The fixed core 21 is attached to an enclosure 32 that houses the inventive power conversion apparatus 20. Upper and lower bearings 33 allow for substantially friction free rotation of central shaft 27. The pulleys 24 are keyed and otherwise conventionally attached to the motor and mast shafts 25, 25A. FIG. 4 also show a method to mount and position the pinch rollers 28, that is accomplished by using the rotatable plates 22 as supports. The tensioning pulleys 29 can also be mounted to the rotatable plates 22 where a radial slot can be used to provide sufficient radial adjustment to achieve a desired amount of belt tension. In this embodiment, electrical power is converted into torque that is output through the center shaft 27.

[0026] The embodiment shown in FIG. 5 differs from that of FIG. 3 as regards the location of the pinch roller 28. In this embodiment, one segment 26A of the drive belt 26 is arranged as that of FIG. 3; that is, the belt segment 26A is tangent to both the pulley 24 and the fixed core 21. However, the other belt segment 26B is caused to be at a more direct angle to the fixed core 21. This arrangement results in the belt 26 being in more contact with the circumference of pulley which lessens the possibility of belt slippage. The different angles of belt segments 26A and 26B further result in an off-set in the driving force applied by motors 23 which translates in increased efficiency of the energy conversion process.

[0027]FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view of an embodiment of the inventive power conversion apparatus 20, wherein an electro magnetic generator 34 is positioned internal of the motor 23 and masses 23A. The generator armature 35 is incorporated with the center shaft 27. In this embodiment, the center shaft 27 and therefore the generator armature 35, rotate relative to the enclosure 32. The generator field 36 is incorporated with the generator casing 37 and is fixedly attached to the stationary enclosure 32, such as by bolts 38. Thus, the embodiment of FIG. 6 outputs electricity or, alternatively a combination of electricity and torque. Pulley or gear 39 provides a means to utilize the output torque to drive a machine or tool located external to the power conversion apparatus 20.

[0028]FIG. 7 is a variation of FIG. 6 wherein the armature 35 of the generator 34 is fixed relative to the enclosure 32. Here, the field 36 rotates around the armature 35 upon rotation of the motor or motors 23 and the rotating plates 22. Accordingly, the field 36 of the generator 34 is fixedly attached to the rotatable plates 22, such as by welding, and the output energy comprises only electricity through conductors 41.

[0029] The drive belts 26 may comprise a type of belt commonly referred to as a timing belt, which has a plurality of alternating ridges and grooves or teeth along the inside diameter thereof. Corresponding and mating teeth may be provided on the outer diameters of the pulleys 24 and the fixed core 21. Or, the belts 26 can comprise a type of bicycle chain, where the pulleys and the fixed core include a plurality of spaced protrusions that mate with openings in the chain. With proper tensioning of the belts 26, rotation of the pulleys 24 about their own axis will cause non-slipping rotation of the belts 26, which in turn will cause rotation of the rotatable plates 22 as explained above. In this manner, energizing the electrical motor 23 provides for rotation of the motor shaft 25 and the mass shafts 25A, and in turn the pulleys 24 attached thereto and rotation of the rotatable plate 22. Since the motor and masses are attached to the rotatable plate 22, the motors 23 and the masses 23A themselves move in orbital rotation about the center of the fixed core 21. Using a geometric configuration of the pulleys 24 and fixed core 21 similar to that shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the torque or power produced by the center shaft 27 will be a combination of the speed of rotation of the rotatable plate 22 and the centrifugal force of the mass of the motors 23 and bodies of mass 23A as they orbit about the axial shaft 27. Inasmuch as the torque output by the axial shaft 27 is a function of square of the rotational speed, times the square of the distance between centers, times the number of motors, times the mass of the motors, it is seen that an increase of the rotational speed and distance between centers exponentially increases the output torque. Further, inasmuch as the power output at the center shaft 27 is a further function of the output torque times the rotational speed, the rotational speed has an overall cubic effect on the output power. Thus, the present invention provides for very large power outputs, all of which results from the combination of orbital and axial rotation of the masses 23A and motors 23 by means of a single drive belt 26 that is common to all masses 23A and motors 23.

[0030] While the invention has been described, disclosed, illustrated and shown in certain terms or certain embodiments or modifications which it has assumed in practice, the scope of the invention is not intended to be nor should it be deemed to be limited thereby and such other modifications or embodiments as may be suggested by the teachings herein are particularly reserved especially as they fall within the breadth and scope of the claims here appended. 

I claim as my invention:
 1. Energy conversion apparatus comprising: a fixed core; a rotatable plate arranged concentric with said fixed core; at least one electric motor attached to said rotatable plate, each of said at least one motor having a motor shaft; one or more masses attached to said rotatable plate, each of said one or more masses having a rotatable shaft; pulley apparatus attached to the motor shaft of each of said at least one motor, and attached to said rotatable shaft of said one or more masses; and one belt apparatus connecting said pulley apparatus to said fixed core.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said fixed core comprises a circular member, said pulley apparatus comprising a pulley extending beyond the diameter of said circular member, said belt apparatus comprises a single belt extending around said pulley and said circular member.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said one or more masses comprise electric motors.
 4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a central shaft attached to said rotatable plate.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said fixed core comprises a circular member, said pulley apparatus comprises a pulley at each end of said motor shaft and said mass shafts, said belt apparatus comprises two belts, with one belt at each end of said motor shaft and said mass shafts.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said one or more masses comprises two masses, said two masses and said one motor being arranged equidistant from each other around a diameter of said rotatable plate.
 7. The apparatus of claim 2, including at least one tensioning apparatus for tensioning the belt connecting said pulleys to said fixed core.
 8. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said one or more masses comprises two masses, said two masses and said one motor being arranged equidistant from each other around a diameter of said rotatable plate, said belts each connecting all three pulleys at each end of said motor and masses.
 9. The apparatus of claim 7, including at least one tensioning apparatus for tensioning each belt connecting said pulleys to said fixed core.
 10. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said at least one tensioning apparatus are arranged such that one side of the belt extends between tangents to said pulley and said fixed core and the other side of the belt extends at an angle greater that a tangent to the fixed core.
 11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said at least one tensioning apparatus are arranged such that one side of the belt extends between tangents to said pulley and said fixed core and the other side of the belt extends at an angle greater that a tangent to the fixed core.
 12. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein at least one of said belts comprises a flexible member having alternative ridges and grooves arranged perpendicular to the length of the belt and extending along the length thereof.
 13. Energy conversion apparatus comprising a fixed core; a rotatable plate arranged concentric with said fixed core; at least one electric motor attached to said rotatable plate, each of said at least one motors having a motor shaft; one or more masses attached to said rotatable plate, each of said one or more masses having a rotatable shaft; pulley apparatus attached to the motor shaft and the mass shafts, one belt apparatus connecting said pulley apparatus to said fixed core; a central shaft attached to said rotatable plate; an armature of an electrical generator combined with said central shaft; and a field of said electrical generator fixedly attached to said fixed core.
 14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein said one or more masses comprise electric motors.
 15. Energy conversion apparatus comprising: a fixed core; a rotatable plate arranged concentric with said fixed core; at least one electric motors attached to said rotatable plate, each of said at least one motors having a motor shaft; one or more masses attached to said rotatable plate, each of said one or more masses having a rotatable shaft; pulley apparatus attached to the motor shaft and said mass shafts, one belt apparatus connecting said pulley apparatus to said fixed core; a central shaft attached to said fixed core; an armature of an electrical generator combined with said central shaft; and a field of said electrical generator fixedly attached to said rotatable plate.
 16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein said one or more masses comprise electric motors. 